Drone safety quiz: was this Top Gear drone flight safe or unsafe?

Viral drone videos are commonplace on the internet. With so much amazing aerial photography gear being made affordable for professionals and amateurs, it’s no wonder.

The latest sensational drone video comes from an amateur pilot who stumbled across a Top Gear film set. He happened to have his DJI Phantom Drone on him when he came across a Ford Mustang being filmed for the new series. He managed to film the car from the carpark where the rest of the film crew were based, and even gets new presenter Rory Reid to wave to the camera!

Here, we quiz you on this amateur pilot’s outing based on the Civil Aviation Authority’s rules of safe flight. This drone weighs less than 7kg, meaning it’s classed as a small unmanned aircraft and is governed by Articles 166 and 167 of the Civil Aviation Authority’s regulations. Does this flight follow the letter of the law?

Take your best guess, and have fun!

Quiz based on Civil Aviation Authority rules:

– Did the drone fly above the limit of 400 feet?

– Was the drone within the operator’s sight at all times?

– Was the drone flown within 50 metres of any vessel, vehicle or structure which is not under the control of the person in charge of the aircraft?

– Was the drone flown in any way which could endanger people or property?

– Did the drone fly within 50 metres of a person, vehicle, building or structure, or overhead groups of people at any height?

– Did the operator keep to his responsibility for avoiding collisions with other people or objects?

– During take-off and landing, was it at least 30 metres away from people, cars, buildings and other structures?

– Was it flown over a congested area such as streets, towns or cities?

– Did it stay well clear of airports and airfields?

– For each flight, had the drone been checked for damage and did the operator make sure all components were working in accordance with the user manual?

– Referencing the “valuable consideration” rule, did the drone operator receive commercial gain from this work?

Still unsure what constitutes safe drone use? See the Civil Aviation Authority’s video guide below. And for professional drone pilots, why not get a drone insurance quote from Insure4Drones? The online form is really quick and easy to fill out, and you get your policy confirmation via email immediately after you’ve bought it. Let us beat your renewal quote: explore this site for more information.

Insure4Drones® is a registered trademark and trading name of JRW Group Services Ltd which is Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority No.313411. Terms and conditions apply. Policy wording available on request or online.